Thursday, May 16, 2019

by David Dawson/Baptist and Reflector, posted Thursday, May 16, 2019 (one year ago)

Photo by Brooks Gray

WHITE PINE, Tenn. (BP) -- During his years of ministry, pastor Dean Haun has experienced both ends of the "success spectrum" in regard to certain events and projects. He has seen some that fall flat and some that surpass all expectations.

So, when he was asked to serve as chairman of the Lakeway Area Go Tell Crusade, held April 28-May 1, Haun prepared himself and his team for what might lie ahead. The four-day evangelism crusade -- led by evangelist Rick Gage and held at the Walters State Community College Great Smoky Mountains Expo Center in White Pine, Tenn. -- ended up reporting more than 850 decisions, including 341 professions of faith. Read More

NASHVILLE (BP) -- J.D. Greear believes the future of the church is bright because of the Gospel. But the Southern Baptist Convention president also noted the church can be susceptible to placing secondary things -- like programs, strategies and messages -- above the Gospel.

Greear aims to steer the attention and allegiance of the church back to the Gospel through his latest book, "Above All: The Gospel Is the Source of the Church's Renewal," available June 1 from B&H Publishing Group. "Gospel Above All" is also the theme for the SBC annual meeting in Birmingham, Ala., June 11-12. Read More

CUMMING, Ga. (BP) -- Jim Burton, 63, Southern Baptist international photojournalist and storyteller and Baptist Press contributor, died on May 10 after living with ALS for six years.

He was a resident of Cumming, Ga., but had been living at a skilled nursing care facility in Dahlonega since July 2018.

Burton's career spanned four decades and included travel throughout Europe, the Far East and Russia as a writer and photographer for Southern Baptist entities. His work also appeared in newspapers, including the Dallas Morning News. Read More

NASHVILLE (BP) -- God and the Gospel will be at the heart of two days of ethics training when the fifth annual ERLC Academy begins May 20.

About 170 pastors, students and other Christians are registered for the event hosted by the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) at the SBC Building in Nashville. Russell Moore, the ERLC's president, will teach "Introduction to Christian Ethics" to pastors, seminary and college students, Bible teachers, ministry leaders and others. Read More

Eaton is "a proven leader," "Kingdom minded," and "administratively gifted," Orr, pastor of First Baptist Church in Chipley, Fla., told Baptist Press in relaying his intent to nominate Eaton at the June 11-12 SBC annual meeting in Birmingham, Ala. Read More

ABUJA, Nigeria (BP) -- Escalating violence that has killed thousands of Christians in Central Nigeria must be addressed by the international Christian community and a Nigerian government that has harassed victims, a global religious liberty coalition noted after its 2019 consultation in Abuja. Read More

This weekly Bible study appears in Baptist Press in a partnership with LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention. Through its Leadership and Adult Publishing team, LifeWay publishes Sunday School curricula and additional resources for all age groups. Read More

Tony Wolfe notes that churches, in partnering with other organizations, should ask "What do they believe about the Bible?" and "How does this partnership extend and enlarge our Great Commission footprint?" Read More

Formed in 1946 by the Southern Baptist Convention, and supported with Cooperative Program funds, Baptist Press (BP) is a daily (Monday-Friday) international news service. Operating from a central bureau in Nashville, Tenn., BP works with a large network of contributing writers, photographers and editorial providers to produce BP News.